Detours
by sakurastarberry
Summary: SSM 2013 Happy Birthday Sasuke-kun! "Career-wise, things were going as planned. He attended marriage interviews and was sure he would find his bride soon. But fate had other plans. Plans that would drive him off the path towards his destiny." Chapter 3 is now up! Please review and tell me what you think.
1. Chapter 1

Day 23-Detours

SasuSaku Month 2013

Happy Birthday Sasuke-kun!

-S-

Uchiha Sasuke was not fond of shortcuts. But sometimes, time constraints necessitate them. He had a route panned out to reach his destination. There would be no detours.

He skipped a few years in grade school. (Not too many. His mother did not want him to miss out on having peers close to his age.) At the age of nineteen, he had already graduated college. He'd been accepted into a prestigious medical school and scheduled to attend in the coming fall. Everything was going according to plan so far.

Next on the list is his future family. He'd already decided that he'd get married at age twenty. Perhaps a little too early, but he's planned this since he was in preschool. He would marry a beautiful and intelligent woman. She would come from a family of status, like his. A daughter raised from birth to become the perfect bride. Then, his mother would ensure that the woman marrying into their clan would be suitable as his future wife and mother to his heirs.

But of course, not everything goes according to plans. For almost twenty years, he's managed to follow a set course, a path laid down for him by the Uchiha elders, grooming him to inherit their Uchiha Enterprises. In college, he majored in business administration, but had taken many science courses on the side. It was decided that he would go to medical school with a combined Ph.D. program so that he can be a more effective heir. Uchiha Enterprises, although having varying ventures, was primarily a medical technology company.

Career-wise, things were going as planned. He attended marriage interviews and was sure he would find his bride soon.

But fate had other plans.

Plans that would drive him off the path towards his destiny.

-S-

The marriage interviews were not going well. The many women presented to him were attractive, intelligent, graceful, born from high society. They were eager to marry him. None of them interested him.

Time was ticking. He was turning twenty soon. He had to find a bride soon, so that they can have the acceptable minimum of six months engagement.

But no one was suitable. And he had to have the perfect wife.

-S-

July 23rd.

Today was his twentieth birthday and still no fiancée.

Today was also the start of orientation week. His father, mother, and brother dropped him off in front of the administration building after an early birthday breakfast. He arrived early to avoid the rush of students sure to arrive around the scheduled time. A little too early it seemed, for the building was yet to open and he could not collect his orientation pack. He decided to take a stroll; half an hour was far too long a wait to just stand in front of the door. Familiarizing himself with his surroundings was on his to do list anyway.

At 8am, it was not too hot yet, but the sun was already up and so he wore his sunglasses. There were already a few people on campus wearing light blue shirts with the school's insignia. But there was also another girl, pacing back and forth. She wore a hat that hid her hair and sunglasses that hid her face. In her hands, she held a map of the university. She stopped her pacing and turned towards him. There was a soft greeting and a smile. He nodded in acknowledgement, but she seemed to take it as invitation and approached him.

"Sasuke-kun! I knew we would meet again."

She took off her hat and sunglasses. _Sakura_

A/N: I'm going by US school system: so school year starts in the fall for most schools.

This is going to be a relatively short story. I'm trying to keep it short so I can finish it and get back to my other stories.


	2. Chapter 2

"You're not wearing a ring," she questioned as she held his left then his right hand.

He stood there, unsure of what to say.

She must have noticed his silence. She dropped his hand and took two steps backwards.

"Sorry, I thought you would remember me. Maybe I have the wrong person," she said sounding utterly dejected as she turned away.

But she wasn't able to walk away. Sasuke's hand gripped her wrist. He stepped towards her.

"Sakura," was all he needed to say. She closed the distance between them and wrapped her arms tightly around him, her large hat pressed against his back.

That one step was his first detour.

-S-

He found out that they were in the same orientation group. Fortunately for her, he was a master navigator. He easily led her back to the admin building to get their packs and stayed with her. After the morning welcoming speeches were then, they were given a break for lunch. They were supposed to be mingling with the other students, but he preferred to sit down under a tree. Unsurprisingly, Sakura followed him. And he listened as she chatted.

He found out that Sakura was renting an apartment with a cousin attending the same university. Sakura also told him that she hasn't decided yet what she wants to specialize in. She asked about the lack of a ring. He confided that he has not found a suitable bride yet. She stared down at her lap for a moment before giving him a small smile and words of encouragement.

"Is there any way that I could help you?" she asked, but she wasn't looking at him.

"Be my wife," he suggested. Yet, his tone was firm and his expression was serious.

She was startled for a moment. He was too.

Silence again.

Her forced laughter cut through the silence as she broke his gaze again, and explained, "Oh, I remember now. When we were kids, you would be my pretend prince because the others didn't want to play with me. You said you'll marry me before you turn twenty-one."

She continued to laugh and asked, "Why twenty-one?"

It was because one of his cousins said that you become an adult when you turn twenty-one. A few years later, he realized that his cousin only said that because it's the drinking age. But he kept to his plans. He would be engaged by age twenty so he can marry at twenty-one. Then, he could have his first child at twenty-four, another at twenty-seven, and possibly a third child at thirty. It was a sensible plan.

Instead, he went with, "Because that's what I decided. You don't want to marry me anymore?"

"What? Why are you asking me this?" Her cheeks were turning to pink and she was fidgeting with the hem of her dress.

"Answer the question." She was obviously flustered. That could only mean she still had a crush on him… Unless he was reading her wrong and the embarrassment was due to something else. Sakura was two years older than him. It's possible that she's currently in a relationship. But he couldn't deny that he wanted it to be the former.

"You're not serious. Are you actually asking me to marry you just so you can follow your plans? But my answer wouldn't matter anyway. I'm not your ideal bride," Sakura retorted, the blush slowly dissipating from her face.

Sasuke didn't have a chance to answer her. The mentors were using megaphones to gather up the students for the afternoon lectures. He was glad for the interruption.

-S-

For the rest of the day, neither of them mentioned the marriage topic. Sakura was pretending it never happened, or rather was taking it as a joke. She bid him goodbye and asked for his cellphone number.

He went home to a dinner cooked by his mother and brother. His father had managed to dissuade her from throwing him a surprise party, and he was glad for it. It had been a long day and he did not want to be crowded by people asking him, _how does it feel to no longer be a teenager? _As if you suddenly change overnight and turn into someone different in the morning.

After dinner, his mother reluctantly left him all alone at the penthouse. She insisted on leaving him a detailed to do list and reminded him that she was only a helicopter ride away. The family left early knowing he had another early day tomorrow. He tried, but sleep was evading him. In the end, he brought his pillow to the solarium, a tinted glass-domed room meant for languishing under the sunlight. It was difficult to see the stars, but at least he could see the moon. Tonight was a full moon. Too bad he didn't have a telescope here. But even without it, he could see that it was a beautiful night and he wondered if maybe some part of him was holding on to the promise he made with Sakura.

Whenever he imagined his future, the wife would be blurry and out of focus, but she always had pink hair. He remembered announcing to his family on his 8th birthday that he would marry Sakura. No one had taken him seriously.

Over the years, he realized why. Sakura was not part of their world. They weren't even supposed to meet.

Today was his first detour from the planned course. But the alternative course was formed long ago. The moment that he approached Sakura at the park playground, that was when a new path was made.

A/N: July 23, 2013 is a full moon. Wanted to include that because the moon is beautiful and it's also part of the SasuSaku relationship. The moon is shown when Sasuke leaves and when Sakura cries over their photo.


	3. Progress

Chapter 3: And with some adjustments… progress

For the rest of orientation week, Sasuke and Sakura bumped into each other. He was not deliberately seeking her out, nor was she following him.

Maybe it was gravity. Sakura had been somewhat of a satellite when they were kids. No, that wasn't really accurate. Satellites orbit at a certain distance, usually geosynchronous. She did have a tendency to orbit around him, but she approached him too.

In any case, he was starting to seriously consider proposing to Sakura. He wasn't in love with her, but that wasn't really important for his ideal marriage. If he and Sakura had mutual respect and understanding, then that was enough to make it successful. He could easily see Sakura as his wife. He would come home to a delicious dinner and be greeted by their sweet, adoring children. Sakura, at times, was an annoyance but it was something he could easily tolerate. Usually, that trait would manifest itself as part of her overly caring nature. Yes, Sakura would be well suited to be his wife and mother of his future children.

As he thought about it, new plans started forming. He had to take Sakura out on a few dates to prove to her how serious he was. However, it was proving a little difficult. No matter how many hints he's dropped, Sakura was either blissfully ignorant, or pretending to be. He had to depart from his plans again. (It was never part of the plan to have to romance his future wife. Why wouldn't she just accept a marriage interview?)

Sasuke was taught to ask the parents' permission to marry their daughter. He hadn't done that yet, but he was already making plans to make himself known to them. After some time, he would make his intentions known.

This was already becoming much more complicated than it had to be. But nothing interesting was without some difficulty.

-S-

School started. He and Sakura shared several classes together. He managed to persuade Sakura to carpool with him instead of her cousin. Sakura was still saving up to buy for her own car. (He would have bought her one, but he already knew she would refuse.) She lived near him and it was more convenient for her since their schedules almost always matched. Sakura would be able to stay long hours in the library and lab without having to resort to public transportation. She gave in when he reminded her how dangerous it could be for her to travel alone at night, even with her pepper spray.

After two months of patience and not-dates, Sakura had finally agreed to go on a date with him. He was now two months behind schedule, but at least he's making progress towards his goal. Sakura need not agree to the proposal immediately. And there was no threat to their relationship.

Sakura was hesitant and nervous after confiding in him that this would be her first real date. And was he really serious about this? Because she's loved Sasuke-kun for a long time and it's always been just him. While for him, there could be plenty of other girls more suited to be his girlfriend. He could almost hear her concerns. She wasn't voicing them, but the expression on her face was enough.

He didn't mention that he wanted to skip the dating and boyfriend-girlfriend phase. Lately, it was becoming the norm for him to have to change his plans to suit Sakura. But he also found that maybe he didn't mind it too much. He took note of every change he'd had to make and complained about it. Yet, he was still here refusing to let go of her hand.

Wasn't it obvious? But maybe she needed to hear the words.

"Sakura, I claimed you as my wife when I was five," he reassured her.

"Yeah, but I didn't think you'd remember that. And I never took you seriously because you were younger than me. And you were five! You didn't know what you were saying," she reminded him.

"I'm still younger than you. But it's never mattered. It never stopped you from accepting. I know what it means now and the offer still stands."

"Because you were only saying that to be nice! And should we really be talking about this on the first date?" she asked, trying to drop the conversation.

But he wasn't having that. "That's what all this is leading towards. Our age difference didn't stop you from having a crush on me." _Tell me what's the problem._

"I'm worried that we're going to date and you're going to realize that you don't truly want me to be your wife. And you're just holding on to the nostalgia of childhood. And you're just tired of having marriage interviews with strangers. That you're settling for me, someone you think you know. And then you won't like me anymore. And you won't want me as a wife anymore. And -"

Sasuke cut her off with a kiss. She was starting to ramble now and he didn't want that.

He took note of all her concerns and he would put her fears to rest. But not right now. Tonight, they would have a nice date.

"Sakura, I wouldn't be here if I didn't want to be. And neither would you."

And then there were more and more kisses. He dropped off a very flustered Sakura at her apartment. And he went to sleep very pleased with himself.

A/N:

*Does anyone want to see some tidbits of SasuSaku as kids? They mention it, but I'm not sure if I should show that scene.

*SasuSaku knowing each other before age 12 is one of my headcanons. I figure something had to have happened for Sakura to develop a deep enough crush on him to forsake her friendship with Ino. So yeah, childhood romance appears in my fics.

*I like this fic because I see Sasuke as being OCPD (Obsessive Compulsive Personality Disorder) because he's a perfectionist and he always has goals and plans. In this story, he has to step away from his plans and make changes, hence _detours_.


	4. Retrogress

Chapter 4

And now we retrogress

October was marked by more dates and more kisses. Instead of late night study sessions at the library, Sasuke brought Sakura and her pile of books to his apartment. The solarium had a comfy sofa set with lots of pillows, a nice view of the moon, and a steady supply of sweets (for Sakura. Sasuke didn't like sweets as a child and he still doesn't.) This time, they were in Sakura's and her cousin's shared apartment. A few days before, Sakura had stayed so late and she was so tired, that she fell asleep. She later woke up on the large recliner with her head on Sasuke's chest and her arms tightly wound around him. Sakura had freaked out, muttered something about impropriety, and later refused to stay at his apartment.

Almost three months had passed since his birthday and he was going to propose again very soon. Sasuke already had a new set of plans to put into motion.. At the end of October, there was a one-week holiday break, and he will accompany Sakura back to her parents' home. During this time, he will re-acquaint himself with Sakura's family and declare his intentions of furthering their relationship. For Thanksgiving break, he will again venture to the Haruno home with his parents and brother to formalize the engagement. Then, for winter break, Sakura and her family will be invited to stay at the Uchiha manor for the holidays and to start the wedding preparations. By then, he will have gained enough trust from Sakura's family to get permission for Sakura to move in to his penthouse. Finally, they will have a marriage in the spring or summer, whichever Sakura preferred.

Sasuke once again had a strict timeline to follow so he was very surprised when Sakura disagreed.

"We're not going to discuss marriage, Sasuke-kun. We're not even in a relationship," she explained once she processed his very specific plans for them.

Understandably, Sasuke was not at all pleased at her dismissal and countered, "What is all this then? I made it clear to you from the very beginning that we are going to get married once we're done with all these formalities."

"Is that what this is to you? Just something you have to do before marriage?" Sakura was starting to truly understand Sasuke's intentions now. He truly had made it clear from the beginning; she couldn't deny that. But a part of her wanted to be in denial and hope for something more.

"This wasn't even part of the plan. We should already be planning our wedding by now. However, I took your sentiments into account and followed this series of steps for your benefit," Sasuke continued, trying to make her understand.

"Well, sorry for forcing you to go on dates with me. But if you don't even want to date me, why would you want to marry me?" There were tears building up in Sakura's eyes, the added moisture was making her eyes shine brightly.

"Sakura, you are missing the point. Engagement does not mean we will stop going on dates and I will stop courting you. But I am abiding by your needs because I want to marry you. Why are you trivializing our relationship?" He tried to approach it from another angle and held both of her hands in his.

Sasuke let go of one of her hands to pull out a white embroidered handkerchief to wipe away the tears she could no longer hold back. He tugged on the hand he still held and pulled her into an embrace. The handkerchief was put away in favor of wrapping both of his arms around her. Sakura's arms rose and she placed her hands on his sides. And then roughly pushed him away. Catching him by surprise, she easily escaped the confines of his arms.

"I'm sorry, Sasuke-kun. We're too different. We want different things out of a relationship," she forced out, walking towards the front door.

No, he was not going to give up just because of a misunderstanding. He grabbed Sakura's wrist to pull her back and then moved his hands to upper arms to make her face him.

"Sakura, I'm already doing what you want. I've been getting you flowers, taking you to dinner and a movie, the moonlit stroll, and even taking you shopping. Tell me what you want, what you expect, and I will comply," he reasoned.

"That's the point, Sasuke! 'Comply'? You're saying that what you're doing is all for me, but ultimately it's for yourself. You are just enduring this for the sake of your end goal: a marriage of convenience," she paused and looked up, directly into his eyes. "I want romance in a relationship, Sasuke. Not a checklist. And I want love in a marriage, not some convenient compromise."

"If you love me, then marry me."

Sakura shook her head. "I don't. And this needs to stop before I do. In a marriage, one person's love is not enough. Neither of us will be happy. What I want is for us have our old friendship back."

But Sasuke was stubborn. "We're not breaking up, Sakura."

"No, because we're not in a relationship," she repeated.

"Then, don't end things before we even start," he retorted, frustration evident in his tone.

"We need to. We already know how this will end." And then, he realized what her problem really was.

"Sakura, that was in the past. I'm not leaving you again," he reassured her, his tone back to calm and gentle.

"Sasuke-kun, if you truly care about my feelings, then you'll stop."

At this point, Sakura had hidden her face in her hands, but he could still see the stream of tears.

He sighed, and wrapped her in his embrace again. "Okay. I'll go."

Sasuke walked away and out the door.

-S-


End file.
